Members from the Boys and Girls Club visited Makanalani. They loved being able to disconnect for a couple days and enjoy time spent together. This group is a hip-hop team that performs all over the island to promote a suicide and drug free culture in Hawaii through the art of dance and their passion for life. During team bonding, they played board games with one another, hiked the property, fed the animals, and played music while taking a break from their normal weekly commitments to dance practices. We loved being able to host them!
Members from the Haleakala Waldorf School visited Makanalani this past weekend. They mentioned that the kiddos that came to the camp could not stop talking about their visit to the property. They especially enjoyed their time doing a night hike and visiting with the donkeys.
We were also able to host a group of Senior students from College View Academy in Lincoln, Nebraska. The growth and spectrum in visitors to Makanalani has been exceptional. We cannot wait for the mission of Makanalani to keep spreading to partners on the mainland.
As you might remember, profits from Naikela Botanicals help further the mission of Makanalani. The tea garden is mostly known for just that, tea. We grow, harvest, and make the Naikela tea on the farm, but the tea garden also has other plants, like Taro; a Hawaiian delicacy, that we are able to enjoy. The history of taro goes as far back as the beginning of Hawaiian civilization. It is known for being the focal point of the Native Hawaiian creation story, the diet of Native Hawaiians, and has been used for survival and prosperity for many generations; an amazing plant with strong nutritious value and heart shaped leaves!
